Meet the four people who have signed up to be Tampa’s next mayor—so far

Tampeños will elect a new mayor in 2027, and so far less than a handful of candidates have officially registered to succeed Mayor Jane Castor, who is term-limited after being re-elected in 2023.

Some big names are rumored to be running—including Bob Buckhorn, who’s already served two terms and District 4 City Councilman Bill Carlson—but just four are officially in the race. 

Election Day in Tampa’s 2027 municipal election is set for Tuesday, April 27, 2027. Early voting days have yet to be determined, and the voter registration deadline is Feb. 1, 2027.

Alan J. Henderson

At 23 years old, Alan Jared Henderson would be the second-youngest mayor in Tampa history (as previously-reported James Edgar Lipscomb, the 13th Mayor Of Tampa, served from 1873-1876, and was 23 years old when he was sworn in). First to register in the race, the Brandon-native has a master’s degree in business administration and management from Golden Gate University currently leads Dilemma Esports and Entertainment where he is founder and CEO.

Henderson carries a heavy entrepreneurial background, but told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay he doesn’t plan to run Tampa like a business. 

Henderson has expressed a vision prioritizing reform based on open communication with Tampa residents for community empowerment. His initiative largely includes improving housing affordability and integrating more public feedback through new mechanisms. This includes a plan to instate the Mayor’s Mobile Office Initiative, a resource for services that can travel in rotation to neighborhoods across the city. 

“If people have questions they want answered, they can come in, or if they want to directly give us feedback, they’ll have a mechanism for that consistently,” Henderson said. 

Henderson said he wants to establish a “resident-obsessed government” and emphasize transparency in his vision for the city by ensuring that facts and memoranda are presented in an understandable manner for residents.

“When I look across Tampa, I see families and friends and the residents that I’ve met with,” Henderson said. “I hear their concerns about affordability and wanting to get around easier and making the city safer. It all resonates on a really personal level to me.”

Julie Magill 

Contractor and real estate broker Julie Magill also claims she shares a strong belief in transparency. Investigations into municipal funding over time have left her with questions about the city indulging in “wasteful spending,” she said. 

Magill previously ran for primary as a Republican in the Hillsborough County Public Schools Board of Education District 1 against Nadia Combs and Layla Collins in 2024. Now, as a candidate for mayor, she wants to evaluate where the city’s funding is going to and to help reallocate it toward better infrastructure. 

Poor management of storm drains and other facilities which she claims led to immense storm and flood damage with no reprieve, is another issue Magill will take up.

Magill told CL she aims to improve and streamline processes for construction and repairs. This includes reforming criteria for storm damage renovations, which she recalled was a pressing issue when letters were sent to countless residents south of Gandy stating that their homes were not deemed fixable after suffering damage from hurricanes Helene and Milton. 

“When you have solid concrete block homes, they’re telling you to tear them down,” Magill said. “I know people that did tear them down. It breaks my heart.”  

Magill also wants to help redevelop Sulphur Springs, a Tampa neighborhood that she said she spent most of her childhood in and admires. She believes that due to abandonment on part of landlords and law enforcement, crime resides highly in unmaintained, inexpensive duplexes across the district within city limits. 

Reginald B. Strachan

Reginald Byron Strachan hails from Miami, but he has lived in various cities across Florida—from Tallahassee to Leesburg—and he believes his experience and character has equipped him with the skills to best serve Tampa’s residents. 

One of Strachan’s primary objectives for the city is to instate more funding for academic resources and vocational training in public education. Strachan also told CL that he wants to stimulate higher median incomes for essential professions such as teaching. 

Strachan said his emphasis on strong interpersonal skills stems largely from an extensive background in auto retail as a salesperson, where he has harnessed what he considers the most essential skill, aside from trade and financial savvy: “listening to the people.”

Strachan said he wants to create a welcoming and intimate environment for residents to voice their concerns, as he has witnessed past leadership put up a social “wall” in community discussions.

“I don’t have a closed-hand philosophy,” Strachan said. “If your hand is closed, you can’t give anything and you can’t receive anything. People are the real wealth because they’re your legacy.” 

Khadim R. Abdi

Khadim R. Abdi declared candidacy in December last year with goals for reform in mainly three areas. 

He wants to improve public transportation, with more bus routes in neighborhoods and training for bus drivers.

Abdi also wishes to reform systemic issues in law enforcement. One of these issues is the community’s relationship with law enforcement agencies, which Abdi believes is worse off by the overarching presence and actions of the United States Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

“ICE today is an example of how bad the system is,” Abdi said. “What happens with law enforcement is, if there’s no check and balance on them, then they all want to be like wild dogs. ICE would not be welcome in Tampa, a hundred percent.” 

Unlike Florida sheriffs, municipalities aren’t required to have their police sign up for a 287(g) agreement with ICE, which empowers police officers who receive training to act as immigration enforcement agents. Tampa is in a 287(g) agreement and recently secured $430,000 it requested from the Florida Board of Immigration Enforcement.

Additionally, Abdi intends to facilitate affordable housing for residents, especially for those in difficult financial circumstances. He also wants to instill more oversight to ensure landlords are fair to tenants in cases of payment issues and deadlines, he explained. 

“In the city of Tampa, you will be treated as a human,” Abdi said. “Fair treatment from landlords is expected.”

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This article appears in Jan. 15 – 21, 2026.